College and Research Libraries Research Notes 283 A Comparison of Academic Librarians with and without Faculty Status in the Southeast Becky Bolte Gray and Rosalee McReynolds The goal of academic librarians for many years has been to achieve faculty status, but studies on the subject indicate that the majority of librarians who have reached this goal have done so in name only. Many surveys have been conducted demon- strating that librarians with faculty status do not share all of the responsibilities or benefits of regular faculty, particularly in the areas of publishing and length of con- tract year .1 Despite these well-known dis- crepancies, the professional literature generally concludes that faculty status is still desirable for librarians. In an effort to determine if faculty status is more advan- tageous, we conducted a survey to com- pare responsibilities and benefits of librar- ians in the Southeast who have faculty status to those who do not. METHODOLOGY In January of 1982 questionnaires re- - garding benefits and responsibilities of li- brarians were sent to the directors of 140 academic libraries in the Southeast. Pri- vate and publicly supported institutions were surveyed in the states of Louisiana, eastern Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. Recipients of the questionnaire were chosen from Barron's Profiles of American Colleges based upon the number of volumes held in their main li- braries (law, medical, and branch libraries were not included). Only institutions with 100,000 volumes or more were chosen for the survey. 2 The benefits compared were tenure, paid professional development leaves and travel, the opportunity to take academic courses during regularly scheduled work hours, tuition waiver, vacation time, and sick time. The responsibilities compared included the number of hours worked per week, contract year, weekend and eve- ning reference coverage, publishing, and teaching. Of the 140 library directors contacted, 103 (74 percent) responded. Out of those 103 respondents, 75 indicated that they had faculty status while 25 indicated that they did not. Three failed to specify the status held by .their librarians. Those three questionnaires were eliminated from con- sideration, leaving a convenient 100 sur- veys for comparison of benefits and re- sponsibilities. RESULTS The first conclusion that we reached from our survey is that there is confusion and variation as to how faculty status is defined. Of those respondents indicating that they had faculty status, one-third did not have academic rank titles (i.e., instruc- tor, assistant professor, associate profes- sor, etc.). They were, instead, ranked by librarian titles (i.e., librarian I, II, III, IV or assistant librarian, associate librarian, etc.), had no titles, or else did not respond to the question of rank at all. Two institu- tions with faculty status reported that it was only implicit or informal. One had re- cently rescinded faculty rank, tenure, and titles, but the director there apparently still considered librarians to have faculty status, as she replied affirmatively to the question. 3 In two instances, the director did not have faculty status, but the other librarians did. In one other, the reverse was true. Becky Bolte Gray is former cataloger, Loyola University, and Rosalee McReynolds is serials librarian, Loyola University, New Orleans, Louisiana. 284 College & Research Libraries The vagueness of faculty status was also found among those who said they did not have it. Two directors referred to their sit- uation as that of "academic recognition" or "academic status. 11 Another reported that faculty status was currently at issue and that a resolution would come follow- ing an opinion from the state attorney general's office. Similarly, other respon- dents stated that faculty status for librari- ans was under consideration at their insti- tutions, but not yet a reality. The frustration that this can cause was evident in remarks like ''the question of faculty status, tenure, etc., is completely up in the air. I can't begin to provide an answer in the absence of any faculty gov- ernance structure''; and ''a handbook de- fining the status of librarians is currently in preparation. They will be neither ad- ministrative nor faculty.'' The area in which there was an apparent advantage to having faculty status was that of paid professional development leaves (see table 1). Fifty-six (75 percent) of those with faculty status received profes- sional development leaves of some kind compared to thirteen (52 percent) of those without faculty status. The purpose of these leaves included professional meet- ings, research, and sabbaticals. Librarians in both groups were assisted in attend- ance of professional meetings, but the tra- ditional sabbatical was most often avail- able to those librarians with faculty status. Remarks from those without faculty status included "it may be possible, but no one has ever received such a leave," and that leaves may be taken "when funds are available.'' The advantage of faculty status was not evident in the other benefits listed in the questionnaire. In the case of paid profes- sionally related travel, those without fac- ulty status seemed to enjoy a slight advan- tage. For that group, comments ranged from ''as funds are available'' to ''funds are generous." For both groups, how- ever, the following remarks were com- mon: "depends on budget, 11 "depends on nature and cost of meeting,'' and ''within state guidelines.'' In the majority of cases of those with or without faculty status, librarians had the July 1983 opportunity to take academic courses dur- ing the regularly scheduled work day. This benefit extended most often to those with faculty status. Those without faculty status, however, were more frequently granted tuition waivers. The policies for sick time varied broadly among the libraries surveyed, but on the whole, the amount of sick days granted for those with and without faculty status was similar. Approximately one-third in each category ranged from more than five weeks to an unlimited amount of sick leave. Half of the respondents in both cat- egories had from six to fifteen sick days. The remaining one-sixth had from sixteen to twenty-five sick days or had sick time dependent upon length of service. Of the libraries surveyed without fac- ulty status, all had twelve-month con- tracts with the exception of one, which had a ten-month contract year (see table 2). The twelve-month contract was also the norm for librarians with faculty status. Only 10 percent of the latter had a nine- month contract or the option of a nine- month or twelve-month contract. This is an obvious contradiction of the "Stan- dards for Faculty Status for College and University Libraries" adopted by the As- sociation of College and Research Li- braries in 1971. These standards, en- dorsed by the AA UP and library associations across the country, specify that librarians should be appointed for the academic year. 4 None of the respondents with faculty status who did not currently enjoy this benefit indicated that they an- ticipated receiving it. Because of the frequent occurrence of the twelve-month contract year, librarians in both categories had designated amounts of vacation time. As with sick time, the number of vacation days varied widely from institution to institution. Some 40 percent of those with faculty sta- tus enjoyed twenty-two or more vacation days, but nearly 50 percent of those with- out faculty status also had this benefit. Less-liberal vacation policies were ex- tended to 11 percent of those with faculty status and 16 percent of those without fac- ulty status who had fewer than fifteen va- cation days a year. The remainder in both Research Notes 285 Yes No Meetings Research Sabbatical All paid partially paid none paia all/partial Yes No No Response Total Partial None 6-10 days 11-15 days 16-20 days 21-25 days 26- days unlimited length of service or varies no response Length Contract Year 9 months 10 months 10.5 months 12 months TABLE 1 BENEFITS OF LIBRARIANS With Faculty Status 1. Do librarians receive paid professional development leaves? 75% (56) 25 (19) If so, please explain for what purpose (research, sabbaticals, professional meetings, etc .) such leave is received : 100% (56) 21 (15) 48 (27) 2. Aie professionally related travel expenses paid for librarians? 31% (23) 53 (40) 4 (3) 11 (8) 3. Can librarians take academic courses during normal working hours? 88% (56) 12 (9) 4. Do librarians have a tuition waiver? 56% (42) 16 (12) 28 (21) 5. How many sick days do librarians receive? 9% (7) 43 (32) 0 4 (3) 7 (5) 24 (18) 7 (5) TABLE2 WORK SCHEDULES OF LIBRARIANS With Faculty Status 7% 3 3 85 3 (5) (2) (2) (64) (2) Without Faculty Status 52% (13) 48 (12) 69% (9) 31 (4) not significant 44% (11) 40 (10) 0 16 (4) 75% (19) 20 (5) 4 (1) 68% (17) 24 (6) 8 (2) 20% (5) 32 (8) 1 (1) 0 12 (3) 20 (5) 8 (2) 4 (1) Without Faculty Status 0 4% (1) 0 96 (24) 0 9- or 12-month option Vacation Days The total population for those with faculty status (N = 64) represents those with 12-month contracts only. The remaining 11 institutions had no formal vacation since contract years range from 9 to 10.5 months. 1-15 vacation days 11% (7) 16-21 30 (19) 22 or more 37.5 (24) varies with length of service No response Workweek Number of Hours Worked Per Week 35 hours or fewer 36-39.5 hours 40 or more hours no designated hours 22 0 (14) 16% (12) 33 (25) 48 (36) 3 (2) 16% 21 46 16 4 28% 24 40 8 (4) (5) (11) (4) (1) (7) (6) (10) (2) 286 College & Research Libraries categories had between sixteen to twenty- one days, or accrued time depending upon their length of service. Unlike teaching faculty, most librarians have a regular work week, ranging from thirty-five to forty hours. Generally, we found that those without faculty status were assigned fewer hours than those with faculty status. Of those without fac- ulty status, 28 percent worked thirty-five hours per week, compared with 16 per- cent of those with faculty status. At the higher end of the scale, 48 percent of those librarians with faculty status worked forty hours a week, compared with 40 percent of those without faculty status. A majority of institutions surveyed re- quired librarians from outside the refer- ence department to have weekend and evening reference duty (see table 3). This was true for librarians with and without faculty status and may depend primarily upon the size of the professional staff. Scheduling of hours outside of the regular work week is not a topic of the ''Standards for Faculty Status for College and Univer- sity Libraries,'' and it has been suggested that evening and weekend work is an ad- ministrative matter, unrelated to faculty status. 5 One of the basic arguments for faculty status for librarians is that they serve in a July 1983 unique teaching capacity within the aca- demic community. This may take place in the classroom, but generally occurs in the library through reference work and biblio- graphic instruction, as well as through the development, organization, and control of the collection. Most library directors re- sponding to the survey interpreted II teaching'' in the traditional sense. Ac- cording to the survey, 52 percent of those with faculty status are required to teach or do bibliographic instruction, compared with 40 percent of those without faculty status. It is interesting to note that some li- brarians considered bibliographic instruc- tion to be teaching, but others did not. Of those directors whose institutions gave faculty status, and who made written . comments in this area, only three stated that their librarians had ever taught in aca- demic departments outside of the library. Just as librarians do comparatively little teaching, they also do comparatively little publishing. Of those with faculty status, 28 percent are required to publish com- pared to 8 percent of those without faculty status. A majority in both categories were not required to publish, although they were encouraged to do so. In both catego- ries (8 percent of those with faculty status, 4 percent of those without faculty status), the comment was made that publishing TABLE3 RESPONSIBILITIES OF LIBRARIANS Yes No No Response Yes No Bibliographic Instruction Necessary for Promotion No Response Yes No Necessary for Promotion No Response With Faculty Status 1. Is evening and weekend reference coverage shared by librarians from outside the reference department? 69% (52) 28 (21) 3 (2) 2. Do librarians have teaching responsibilities? 37% (28) 37 (28) 15 (11) 4 (3) 9 (7) 3. Do librarians have publishing responsibilities? 20% (15) 63 (47) 8 (6) 9 (7) Without Faculty Status 64% (16) 32 (8) 4 (1) 16% (4) 48 (12) 24 (6) 4 (1) 8 (2) 4% (1) 84 (21) 4 (1) 8 (2) was a factor in promotion decisions. One institution with faculty status allowed li- brarians to substitute publishing for a sec- ond master's degree in applying for rank beyond assistant professor. CONCLUSIONS The "Standards for Faculty Status for College and University Libraries" have not yet been met by many institutions that state that they have faculty status for li- brarians. Appointments for the academic year, extended paid research leaves, and tenure are still unavailable to a number of librarians who seem to be faculty in title only. At the same time, classroom teach- ing and publishing-the traditional prov- inces of faculty-are not widely de- manded of librarians with or without faculty status. The intent of this study was to compare Research Notes 287 and quantify tangible benefits and respon- sibilities of librarians in the Southeast, with or without faculty status. Such a study cannot measure the personal es- teem or prestige that accompanies faculty status, but our results lead us to conclude that the continual effort by librarians over the past several decades to be likened to teaching faculty has had nominal results. Librarians in the southeastern region who have faculty status seem to be much more akin to their counterparts without faculty status. Ironically, with the excep- tion of paid research leaves, those without faculty status may even enjoy better fringe benefits and fewer pressures. As faculty nationwide face crises of reduced enroll- ment and an unstable future for the tenure system, librarians may want to rethink the advantages and disadvantages of sharing their status. REFERENCES 1. Lewis C. Branscomb, ed., The Case for Faculty Status for Academic Librarians (Chicago: American Li- brary Assn., 1970); Greg Byerly, "The Faculty Status of Academic Librarians in Ohio," College & Research Libraries 41:422-29 (Sept. 1980); Russ Davidson, Connie Capers Thorson, and Margo C. Trumpeter, "Faculty Status for Librarians in the Rocky Mountain Region: A Review and Analy- sis," College & Research Libraries 42:203-13 (May 1981); Nancy Davey and Theodora Andrews, "Im- plications of Faculty Status for Unive!.'sity Librarians, with Special Attention to Tenure," Journal of Academic Librarianship 4, no.2 :71-74 (May 1978); Ronald F. Dow," Academic Librarians: A Survey of Benefits and Responsibilities," College & Research Libraries 38:218-20 (May 1977); Bonnie Jean Jackson, "Status of Academic Librarians in Louisiana," LLA Bulletin 39:99-104 (Winter 1977); Alice Manchikes and George Crabb, "A Survey of Faculty Status Policies for Librarians in Kentucky and Surrounding States," Southeastern Librarian 26:219-25 (Winter 1976); J. Carlyle Parker, "Faculty Status and the Academic Work Year," California Librarian 33:143-49 (July 1972); Prabha Sharma," A Survey of Academic Librarians and Their Opinions Related to Nine-Month Contracts and Aca- demic Status Configurations in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi," College & Research Libraries 42:561-70 (Nov. 1981). 2. Barron's Profiles of American Colleges, V. 1: Description of the Colleges (12th ed.; Woodbury, N.Y.: Bar- ron's Educational series, 1980). 3. The loss of faculty status by librarians is also mentioned in the 1981 study by Sharma in which it was found that of librarians without faculty status in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi, 47 percent had had their faculty status rescinded within the previous ten years. Sharma, "A Survey of Academic Librarians," p. 566 . 4. Association of College and University Librarians, "Standards for Faculty Status for College and University Librarians," College & Research Libraries News 33:211 (Sept. 1972). 5. Dow, "Academic Librarians," p.219. Announcing two important new guides from harrax 1-.-.-- Coming in .August IICSfax GUIDE TO INDUSTRY SPECIAL ISSUES This new index to the special issues of 1,800 industry and trade journals contains 5,000 citations in all. Part I is arranged alphabetically, first by journal title, then by year, and within each year, by article title. References from former journal names to current names are included. 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